Field of the Invention
Versions and embodiments of the present invention relate generally to parachute equipment. Particularly, embodiments of the invention relate to parachute harnesses and use thereof. More particularly, versions of the invention relate to parachute harnesses that may be modified in flight under canopy. Specifically, versions of the invention relate to parachute harnesses that may be configured from hanging vertically to a supine flight position after parachute deployment and new, useful and unobvious versions thereof.
Description/Background of the Related Art.
The art discussed herein is not to be considered admitted prior art but is presented to more clearly discuss and describe what is still lacking in the earlier art.
Parachute harnesses have evolved over the years from uncomfortable military “saddle seat” types in the 1950s and 1960s adapted by parachute jumpers for sport use. Sport harnesses (now also adopted by the military) advanced comfort by using “split saddle” types that enveloped each leg at the crotch area and by spreading the legs apart, reducing stress on the crotch area. These improvements worked well enough, but still were uncomfortable if parachutists opened their main parachute (also called main canopy) high and stayed suspended from the parachute for longer flight times. With a rate of descent of about 1,000 feet per minute, these flight times increased from approximately 2 minutes for an opening at 2,000 feet above ground level (AGL) to 14 minutes from 13,500 feet AGL for canopy formation parachutists and up to 30 minutes or more at 35,000 feet AGL for military High Altitude-High Opening (HAHO). Sometimes referred to as “hang time,” these increased hang times also increased discomfort and potentially medical dangerous “suspension trauma” that cut-off blood flow to legs and subsequent unconsciousness if continued too long without relief.
Another aspect is the drag induced from conventional parachute harnesses slows down the forward speed of the parachute in flight. Drag of the cargo/parachutist/pilot suspended under a ram-air wing-type parachute is a function of the area (square feet or square meters) of the cargo that impinges the relative wind while gliding. This relative wind is from roughly slightly below horizontal to the ground and is the forward flight/drag vector components of the cargo flying through the air. For example only and not intended to be limiting, an average person (parachutist) hanging vertically in a conventional harness under canopy is roughly 9 square feet of frontal body area to the relative wind. These 9 square feet induce more drag as compared to the drag induced by that same person in supine position of roughly 4 to 5 square feet of frontal body area to the relative wind. This reduction of parasitic drag from 9 square feet to roughly 4.5 square feet of the pilot/parachutist/cargo increases performance, glide slope and forward speed under parachute, providing benefits not available using conventional harnesses. This is for example, not intended to limit. This is especially beneficial for “swoop competitions” held in sport parachuting, where the object is to land the parachute as fast as possible and glide as far as possible just inches above the ground. In sport parachute swoop distance competitions, just a few extra feet gliding inches above the ground can make the difference of winning a first place trophy (and potentially cash prizes) and not placing in the top three slots at all, winning nothing. The swoop harness solves this problem of pilot/parachutist drag to glide further than conventional harnesses.
No parachute harness and/or system is known to this applicant that addresses these deficiencies in the earlier art as is used in conventional parachute harnesses. This new, useful and unobvious invention, in various embodiments, accomplishes this much needed advantage of increase in comfort and safety for the parachute pilot and decrease of parasitic drag of pilot/cargo in conventional parachute harnesses and/or systems.